2026 ABSTRACT PAINTING HOLIDAY / ART RETREAT | Provence, South of FRANCE
Situated on the edge of Provence, on the French Riviera, between Nice and Saint Tropez.
Beginners and all artistic levels welcome. Acrylics and watercolours.
This 1-week ABSTRACT art workshop will teach you fun techniques of abstract painting using different fun techniques, using both acrylic paints and watercolours, leaving you to be nothing but creative! You will learn the primary principals of abstract painting and feel confident about doing pleasant-to-the-eye, well executed abstract artistic paintings.
Our art studio, situated at our villa less than 20 minutes from the Mediterranean sea between Nice and Saint Tropez is surrounded by 18 wine domains and their vineyards. Painting and tutoring take place at our highly luminous studio, situated in a pine forest setting under the bluest of blue Provence skies! You’ll also get a free day on which you can choose to rest or take a train to see Monaco and/or Menton, for example. Free group Nice airport pickup and drop off.
Each day on this art retreat is well balanced between painting, learning new techniques + creating your own art work using the new techniques, sightseeing, meals and resting. Join us on this quality ABSTRACT painting retreat in France. Delicious meals are taken both at local restaurants and at our villa! For those interested, wine tasting at a close-by wine domain.
Added to the painting, you will discover the region through breathtaking sightseeing in Cannes, Mandelieu-La Napoule castle, Saint Raphaël (L’île d’or/Golden Island), Cannes, the Blavet Canyon (just a few minutes from our studio) and the beautiful village Provencal of Roquebrune Sur Argens.
Accommodation: Participants have a choice between 1) staying at a ‘Provencal’ residence with a swimming pool, situated next to a pine forest just a few minutes from the art studio. At the residence, solo participants stay at a private 1-bedroom townhouse apartment with a sitting area, kitchen, bedroom, and terrace. Participants who come with a partner or friend, can choose between a 1-bedroom or 2-bedroom townhouse apartment. We also have an Ensuite room adjacent to the art studio.
DATES:
2026
👉 JUNE 23-30 2026 - PLACES AVAILABLE
INCLUDED in this Azenart Painting Holidays abstract art tour:
7 nights (ensuite room) accommodation in a townhouse apartment at a residence with a pool, or at villa with a pool.
MEALS with wine at dinner included (no meals on the free day).
TUITION Learn the basic principles of abstract art and create your own abstract paintings. Beginners welcome!
Art EQUIPMENT provided
Art MATERIALS provided
Fabulous SIGHTSEEING
Wine Tasting (no obligation)
Local TRANSPORTATION in a private vehicle.
Group Nice AIRPORT PICKUP and DROP OFF
PRICES:
£175 at booking. The remainder 120 days prior to the holiday or within 4 working days after booking if less than 120 days to the holiday.
Please note: A knee surgery or a son’s wedding could pop up after you book! This is why our booking payments can be transferred for a period of 12 months after the date of purchase under our Terms.
ACCOMMODATION AT OUR VILLA (Ensuite room adjacent to the art studio):
You are a solo traveller (like most participants): ENSUITE ROOM AT THE VILLA adjacent to the art studio. DOUBLE BED, PRIVATE BATHROOM (13 M2 in total) in single occupancy:
£175 Booking payment + £1990 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
You are coming with your PARTNER (painting participant) and wish to stay AT THE ENSUITE ROOM AT THE VILLA adjacent to the art studio. 1 DOUBLE BED, PRIVATE BATHROOM (13 M2 in total) in double occupancy:
Per person £175 Booking payment + £1490 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
ACCOMMODATION AT A RESIDENCE WITH A POOL:
You are a solo traveller (like most participants): PRIVATE ONE-BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE in a residence with a swimming pool. Townhouse details: 1 bedroom, 1 living room, 1 kitchen, 1 bathroom, terrace:
£175 Booking payment + £1990 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
You are a solo traveller (like most participants): PRIVATE ONE-BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE in a residence with a swimming pool. Townhouse details: 1 bedroom (twin beds can be pushed together), open space with sofa and small kitchen, bathroom, terrace.
£175 Booking payment + £1990 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
You are coming with your partner or a friend and wish to share a PRIVATE ONE-BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE in a residence with a swimming pool. Townhouse details: 1 bedroom (twin beds can be pushed together), open space with sofa and small kitchen, bathroom, terrace.
Per person £175 Booking payment + £1590 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
You are coming with a PAINTING FRIEND: PRIVATE TWO-BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE with two bathrooms in a residence with a swimming pool. Townhouse details: 2 bedrooms, 1 living room, 1 kitchen, 2 bathrooms, terrace.
Per person £175 Booking payment + £1690 for the week. ALL MEALS (except on the free day).
You wish to come with a non-painter? Contact us.
Not included: Getting to Nice airport on Day 1. City tax (£2.50 per night pp). 1 lunch and 1 dinner on the free day. Personal travel insurance.
Mobility: Although there is no need to be an athlete to join this ABSTRACT art retreat holiday, you need to be able to walk without strain at a calm but normal pace. Please note that there are steps to get to the villa and art studio.
Practical information: The closest airports are Nice, Toulon, Marseille and Genoa. You can then take a train to Nice airport for pickup. Pickup at Nice airport is at 6.00 PM on Day 1. Drop off is around 10.00/10.30 AM on Day 8, depending on traffic. Arrival in Nice: If you arrive early and wish to spend the day in Nice shopping or visiting the city, you will be able to store your luggage and take a direct tram from the airport to the centre of Nice for just a few Euros. Also, if you plan on arriving later than the group pickup, there is a train from Nice to Frejus. We will pick you up there if no later than 10.00 PM.
ABSTRACT ART RETREAT IN PROVENCE/RIVIERA & WINE TASTING, SOUTH OF FRANCE SCHEDULE (Please note that the schedule could be switched around following weather forecasts or opening/closing times of places visited):
DAY 1. Group welcome at NICE AIRPORT, pick-up at 6.00 PM. (Please note that there can be no individual pick-ups). Group dinner at a lovely restaurant. Let the fun art week begin!
DAY 2. Late morning start where we will begin with a participative demo on the basics of abstract painting. We will study composition and techniques of abstract painting. This is followed by a delicious lunch at the villa. We will resume our painting session, followed by some WINE TASTING at a local winery. Those not interested will be taken back to the accommodation before going out for dinner.
What is ABSTRACT ART exactly?
Contrarily to a popular belief that abstract art is a work of art worked loosely with a lack of precision, an abstract painting is actually one where visual reality is not depicted. In the same painting, one person could for example, see liquid overflowing from a surface, while another could see hair on a deformed head. Abstract art communicates through shapes, lines, forms, colors, and sometimes tool marks which were used.
DAY 3: Mid morning start with a painting session and tutoring until a nice lunch break at the villa. Painting resumed for a shorter session in the afternoon, followed by some sightseeing in the BLAVET CANYON (accessible by car and a short walk) just a few minutes from the studio. You will be awed by the beautiful views of the Blavet’s pink cliffs, hills and Mediterranean sea off in the distance. Time to rest at the accommodation for a delicious dinner at a local restaurant.
Abstract art (continued): To be considered abstract, a work of art must be non-representational, with no clearly identifiable subjects or objects. It must be subjective. An abstract painting is the opposite of a figurative painting where is subject is chosen in the composition from the start. The abstract painter has great freedom when it comes to form and interpretation.
DAY 4: Full morning painting session followed by lunch at the villa. Afternoon spent in NICE, walking around NICE Old Town. (Those wishing to skip any outing can stay at the accommodation and rest!)
Instead of telling a story, an abstract painting always remains in the realm of what’s intangible. It generally inspires the viewer to feel an emotion, and more often than not, to have an opinion. You either love it or hate it. Because abstract paintings don’t portray realistic subjects, it is more difficult to critique.
DAY 5: Free day! 9.00 AM pickup to go to the train station for those wishing to visit Menton and/or Monaco. (No meals on the free day). Those wishing to rest at the accommodation can do so.
DAY 6: Full morning painting session. Lunch at the villa. Departure for a visit of MANDELIEU-LA NAPOULE castle, directly on the Mediterranean. Dinner in CANNES, near the famous Croisette (close to the Cannes film festival). Back to the accommodation after dinner.
Abstract art, achieves harmony or disarray through the balance or unbalance of composition, line, form and technique. Some pieces are woven through intricate methods while others are pure movement of paint across a canvas.